The "friendly" price

(Baonghean) - After taking our child to kindergarten for the opening ceremony, my wife excitedly shared:

- It was wonderful! This year, the teacher came all the way to the school gate, warmly shaking hands with parents and leading the children up to the third floor. It's nothing like...

I interrupted:

That's right! I heard the Ministry of Education is launching a campaign to create friendly schools. Maybe they'll start practicing friendliness today.

For a week, my son's personality has completely changed. Before, we'd have to spank him with a stick to get him out of bed, then my wife and I would use all our persuasive skills, stuffing three bags of chips into his schoolbag before he'd agree to go to school. But now, as soon as he wakes up, he's frantically demanding that I put on his school uniform and head to school.

- Hurry up, Mom! Ms. Mai's class is so much fun. There are so many toys, cars, airplanes, building blocks, even toy guns that make a clicking sound...

I was secretly delighted. Getting kids to go to school isn't easy. A friendly school environment is what attracts them. This year, my son, the hope of my wife and I, will definitely not be among the top ten dumbest kids in the class!

With a joyful feeling in my heart, I happily volunteered to attend the parent-teacher meeting in my wife's place, a tedious task I'd always pushed onto her. Just as my wife had praised, the teacher, dressed in a graceful ao dai (traditional Vietnamese dress), came to the gate to greet each parent. Once before, I'd gone to a meeting and gotten lost, only realizing it when they called out the names of the students.

Each table has a vase of fresh flowers. In the corner of the room is a pot of hot green tea.

At the beginning of the meeting, the teacher had to explain what a friendly classroom was, then she analyzed the importance of wearing uniforms, the strategic significance of purchasing electronic toys and building a large auditorium with a thousand seats so that parents could hold meetings comfortably and the children could have a place for art, fashion, and beauty pageant competitions. The playground had to be transformed into a park with trees, flowers, and a fountain... Every now and then, she would ask: "Do you parents agree?" Who wouldn't agree? We all shouted in unison like thunder: "Agreed!" Some even shouted "Agreed" three times.

The portly head of the parents' association stood up abruptly and declared, "The school has been friendly to us and our children, so we must reciprocate. I call on everyone to organize a truly grand, friendly, and practical Teachers' Day celebration this year, helping the teachers overcome the year-end price surge!"

Finally, each parent was given a sheet listing a long list of contributions. I glanced at the final number and was almost knocked off my feet by the exorbitantly high "friendly" price!

Tu Quynh